intricate

English edit

Etymology 1 edit

From Latin intricatus, past participle of intricare.

Pronunciation edit

IPA^(key): /ˈɪn.tɹɪ.kət/
Audio (US) (file)
Audio (Southern England) (file)

Adjective edit

intricate (comparative more intricate, superlative most intricate)

Having a great deal of fine detail or complexity.
The architecture of this clock is very intricate.
- 1715 May 15 (Gregorian calendar), Joseph Addison, “The Free-holder: No. 39. Wednesday, May 4. [1715.]”, in The Works of the Right Honourable Joseph Addison, Esq; […], volume IV, London: […] Jacob Tonson, […], published 1721, →OCLC:
  His style of writing […] was […] fit to convey the most intricate business to the understanding […] with the utmost clearness.
- 1907 August, Robert W[illiam] Chambers, chapter V, in The Younger Set, New York, N.Y.: D. Appleton & Company, →OCLC:
  As a matter of fact its narrow ornate façade presented not a single quiet space that the eyes might rest on after a tiring attempt to follow and codify the arabesques, foliations, and intricate vermiculations of what some disrespectfully dubbed as “near-aissance.”
- 1950 March, H. A. Vallance, “On Foot Across the Forth Bridge”, in Railway Magazine, page 149:
  From this point of vantage, we were able to gain an impression of the massive outlines of the main structure, and its intricate maze of girders.

Derived terms edit

Translations edit

having a great deal of fine detail or complexity

Bulgarian: сложен (bg) (složen), заплетен (bg) (zapleten)
Catalan: intricat (ca)
Chinese:
Mandarin: 複雜的／复杂的 (fùzá de)
Dutch: ingewikkeld (nl), gecompliceerd (nl)
Finnish: monimutkainen (fi), konstikas (fi), mutkikas (fi)
French: compliqué (fr), tortueux (fr)
Galician: intricado m
Georgian: ჩახლართული (čaxlartuli)
German: aufwendig (de), kompliziert (de), ausgeklügelt (de), raffiniert (de), kunstvoll (de), knifflig (de), verzwickt (de), vertrackt (de), verwickelt (de), filigran (de), diffizil (de)
Greek: μπερδεμένος (el) (berdeménos)
Ancient: πολύπλοκος (polúplokos)
Hebrew: מסובך, מורכב (he)
Hungarian: tekervényes (hu), bonyolult (hu), szövevényes (hu), komplikált (hu)
Irish: casta, achrannach, aimhréidh, cas (ga), doraidh, doréidh, eanglamtha
Italian: intricato (it)
Japanese: 複雑 (ja) (ふくざつ, fukuzatsu)
Korean: 복잡(複雜)하다 (ko) (bokjap-hada)
Latin: contortus, nodosus
Macedonian: заплеткан (zapletkan)
Manx: cramp
Maori: takawhiwhiwhiwhi, takawhīwhiwhi, matatini
Norwegian:
Bokmål: intrikat (no)

Nynorsk: intrikat
Plautdietsch: derchjehäakjat
Portuguese: intrincado
Russian: сло́жный (ru) (slóžnyj), запу́танный (ru) (zapútannyj), замыслова́тый (ru) (zamyslovátyj)
Scottish Gaelic: eadar-fhighte
Slovak: zložitý, komplikovaný
Spanish: intrincado (es)
Swedish: intrikat (sv), invecklad (sv)
Tagalog: saligutgot
Turkish: ince işçilik
Vietnamese: phức tạp (vi) (複雜)
Zazaki: cıtêfil m, cıtêfile f

Etymology 2 edit

As the adjective; or by analogy with extricate.

Pronunciation edit

IPA^(key): /ˈɪn.tɹɪ.keɪt/
Audio (Southern England) (file)

Verb edit

intricate (third-person singular simple present intricates, present participle intricating, simple past and past participle intricated)

(intransitive) To become enmeshed or entangled.
- 1864 October 18, J.E. Freund, “How to Avoid the Use of Lint”, letter to the editor, in The New York Times (1864 October 23):
  […] washes off easily, without sticking or intricating into the wound.
(transitive) To enmesh or entangle: to cause to intricate.
- 1994 December 12, William Safire, “Avoid Dunkirk II” (essay), in The New York Times:
  But the British and French won't hear of that; they want to get their troops extricated and our ground troops intricated.